2017 resolutions: update #2

Road by stevepb

Hi all! Almost 1 month in! How am I doing?

KeePass: security & efficiency in one

Lock by Ashish_Choudhary

Today another quick post about a tool I've been using and loving for years: KeePass. What is it? A password manager. Why do you need it? Many reasons!

Time for Big Talk

Silhouette father and son by Unsplash

We all know small talk. It's not so bad. But is it interesting? Meh. Personally, I prefer deep conversations. Dreams, ideas, beliefs, fears... People can talk about so much and say so little, and then they tell you about a big topic, and your whole perspective changes. Bam! I love those moments. They can be scary, but they're real.

Being grateful for beginners

Namaste by swamiananda

As you know, I started this blog because I've been looking into ways to improve my life/be happier/that kind of stuff. Something that I've seen a lot is to write down things you are grateful for every day. Wonder how that turned out for me?

App I love: PushBullet!

Illustration from the PushBullet press kit

Just a quick tip for today, but this app is just so convenient! It's called PushBullet and I use it mainly for sharing links quickly. My partner discovered it a long while ago and we've been using it ever since. Basically when you're on a site, you can "push" that link to another device or another person.

9 reasons to cycle to work

Cycling by dusk - Pexels

Cycling to work/school has some obvious benefits, but today I'll list all of the benefits I see when I take my bicycle to work instead of the car.

YouTube recommendation: Practical Psychology

Okay, I decided that a (big) post every day might be a bit of a stretch, but I can't resist posting something quick today. As an added bonus, this recommendation complements well with Life++. In a way, this channel even inspired me to start this blog. So, without further ado: meet Practical Psychology!

2017 resolutions: update #1

Wooden track by smellypumpy

So, after 2 weeks of 2017, how am I doing with my New Year's resolutions? Let's see!

My approach to efficient groceries shopping

Basket by Unsplash

After living together with people who thought the ideal time to buy groceries was after work, every day, I realized how much I disliked that. Not only do I find it a waste of time to go to the supermarket every day, I was also hungry and I knew that after shopping and getting home, the food still had to be prepared, which didn't help my mood AT ALL.

Want to find out what my grocery shopping routine looks like? Keep reading!

Quick & easy lemon water trick!

Lemons ice water by Riedelmeister

Very short post now (catching up from missing to post yesterday :o), but this quick tip might help you a lot if you are interested in drinking lemon water in the morning.

Sleep cyles: the trick to waking up energized?

Alarm clock by congerdesign

To be able to have a nice, productive day, it helps tremendously to feel rested and full of energy. If you are anything like me, you have these days where you wake up because of your alarm, and you feel super-tired. Those mornings, I feel like my eyelids are glued shut, and there's something heavy on me and I have to drag myself out of bed. All I want to do is turn off the alarm and continue sleeping. (Yes, this morning was one of those.) Time to learn more about sleep cycles!

Nomie: track anything!

Nomie

Measuring is knowing. When you want to improve something (anything), it's helpful to have some data by your side to see how often you are doing certain things, and to analyse over time how you are progressing.

How to make productivity tips work

Notes by congerdesign

Today I'm only going for a "quick tip" kind of post, since I spent almost the entire day cleaning out the garage. (It was needed, but I'm so happy we finally did it after having it super-messy for more than a year.)

On topic: I happened to stumble upon this article today: Why Most Productivity Tips Fail (and How to Overcome That) So, what are the biggest take-aways from this article?

2017 resolutions

Other than a few spurs of trying out something, I already made these positive changes in 2016:

Drinking warm lemon water in the morning

by Tookapic

It's supposed to get your digestive system running, purify your body, give you some extra vitamins, and probably a lot more good things. Maybe I'll write a more elaborate post about it at a later point.
I'm not sure it's actually doing a lot for me, but I like a hot drink in the morning, and to me the taste is nice too.
This one, I am usually able to stick to. Hurray!

Morning routine

Tuscany Grape Field by alohamalakhov

I used to only get out of bed when my partner left for work. Then I had to rush a bit and only arrived at work just in time, meaning I had to work long hours. I wanted to change that and compiled a more productive morning routine. I don't stick to it as well as I should, but I get out of bed at least an hour earlier than I used to.


Living on a schedule
A few months after I started my morning routine, my partner came up with the idea of making a schedule to live by. The main goals were to get more housework done and taking time for useful hobbies like playing musical instruments, programming, etc..


Resolutions for 2017
I have a lot of ideas and things I want to try out -hence the start of this blog-, but these are some of the priorities:

• Sticking to my schedule and morning routine
  I will still adjust them due to the new things I want to incorporate and some things just taking more time than I initially thought, but then the main focus will be to actually stick to them as much as possible.
  
• Drink more water
  I'm afraid I'm just naturally not thirsty enough... I really have to keep drinking (water) into mind to just drink the recommended 8-10 glasses of water. I started this habit by the end of 2016, but now I installed an app on my phone to actually track it.
  
• Take a daily walk
  I sometimes did this at work before lunch, but only when there was someone to join me and when I wasn't too busy. I now want to go anyway, and if it's really not possible during lunchtime, then I want to catch up in the evening. Need to get those 10000 steps and a bit of fresh air! :)
  
• Do fitness/pilates exercises
  I used to always have a nice flat stomach, but in the last 2-3 years, I gained some weight and I can see those kilo's on my belly. As for my butt, I did some intense pilates workout for a few weeks, and I was amazed by the result. Unfortunately, after I stopped, the result also slowly melted away. :( So this time I'll try to keep it up, with exercises at least 3 times a week. 1 x belly, 1 x butt, 1 x legs. If I manage to do more, that would be even better, but I would already be happy if I can make 3 times a week happen.
  
• Lose 5kg
  Talking about that weight, I would like to lose about 5kg. I currently have no plans yet for a diet, I will just try to cut out some sweets, eat a bit less, and hope the added exercise will help. Since January is still a month of continued New Year celebrations though, I will only start really improving my eating habits in February.
  
• A daily post on this blog
  A promise is a promise. :) I just think that it will serve as a reminder to keep improving my life through learning, staying healthy and spending my time wisely. And hopefully helping others to do the same along the way!

I have more on my mind, but these have my highest priority. The others I will try to incorporate in my schedule/routines slowly but surely.

What are your resolutions? Let me know in the comments!

The start of something new

Today, a new year has begun: 2017. Throughout 2016, I've already been trying to make some improvements in my life: waking up earlier, getting more stuff done, living healthier... I'm happy to say I partially succeeded, but this year I want to do more!

So the main reason I'm starting this blog is to keep track of interesting life improvement ideas and resources (books, sites, YouTube channels...). What do I find, what do I (try to) implement, what are my findings? I aim to keep an overview while hopefully helping others, and maybe even engaging with you, the readers! I can only dream, no? :)

To find out what I'm up to, stay tuned! I'll try to post something every day, and mix topics up a bit, so it always remains fresh and new.

I hope you had an amazing first day of the year. Let's start making all our days amazing!